“What are you doing?”
She spun around at the sound of a man’s
voice. The pain master had returned. If she made a run for it, she’d be done
with. He looked at her curiously, which gave her hope. He didn’t know who she
was. “I, um, left my trans-conn in here.” She held it up. One looked like any
other from a distance. He wouldn’t know the difference until he saw the small
control panel up close. She moved her fingers below the genetic stamp to cover
his unit number. “Sorry, I need to report elsewhere.”
His eyes narrowed. “Why don’t you have an
insignia on your jacket?”
“I’m materializing down to the planet to do
some surveillance for Daegal. Undercover.”
He nodded but didn’t quite look convinced. Before
he questioned her further, she decided to get out while she could. Without
another word, she turned and hurried through the door. Luckily she didn’t need
an access card to exit.
Her pulse raced so fast that she thought
she might faint but she rushed around the corner and ducked into a
self-contained engineering post that was filled with machines. No personnel
were needed and she briefly thought about trying to sabotage the ship from here
but she didn’t really have the needed knowledge to ensure success. Better she
get down to the planet and go from there.
* * * * *
Planet Earth, State of Colorado, U.S.A.
Underground Tracking Facility
On her back, Jaeda lay in Torque’s arms
with her limbs wrapped loosely around his. Now that the initiation was over, it
was just the two of them and she sensed the change in him—a softer side that he
hadn’t exposed in front of the other two men.
He grazed her neck with his lips in a
tender kiss. She sighed at the small tingle that traveled down her body. He
eased his cock into her pussy, moving one inch at a time, until he was
completely encased inside her. When he lifted his head and looked into her
eyes, it felt to her as if they’d been together forever.
She lightly stroked his cheek with her
fingertips. “Somehow, when we’re together, I feel like anything is possible.”
Before he could respond, she pulled him closer and kissed him deeply. She
needed him like no other.
Their tongues touched as they each began to
move in rhythm. A slow heat built between them. She’d always felt a sense of
superiority with men—for lack of a better term. Probably due to her command
status. But with Torque, she felt completely comfortable with him in the lead.
Something about that gave her a sense of relief, an opportunity to let go.
Torque pressed even deeper and she gasped at the sensation.
When she raked her fingernails down his
back, he moved his hips faster. Harder. He broke their kiss and buried his face
against the side of her neck. She felt his heavy breath against her flesh. Heard
it below her ear. Her own breathing increased as her sexual need grew.
“Look at me,” she whispered. She needed to
see his emotions when they climaxed.
Torque raised his head and looked into her
eyes. She held back the gasp that almost escaped her lips. She saw need in his
gaze, but also caring and a level of tenderness she’d never witnessed before in
a man’s eyes.
At that instance, her body orgasmed,
sending waves of pleasure through her. She refused to break eye contact and
Torque came right along with her. No words, no sounds were exchanged, only
exquisite pleasure that seemed to send them adrift into another world. The
climax wasn’t as explosive as some that she’d had with him. But the feeling was
a binding depth of desire that she hadn’t known could exist between lovers.
When the pleasure began to subside, they
both relaxed and lay together, still intertwined. For a long time, they simply
enjoyed the quietness between them. Gradually Torque moved off her and turned
onto his back.
Jaeda brushed a tear from her cheek. “I
don’t understand this connection,” she said in a low, shaky voice. She’d had
many sexual relationships. With Torque, it was more than that. It went beyond
the sex. Eons beyond.
Torque reached between them and found her
hand. He laced his fingers through hers. “Maybe it’s destiny.” After he said
the words, he grunted as if thinking that sounded stupid.
She turned her head to look at him. “Don’t
make light.”
“I’m not.” He squeezed her hand but kept
his eyes firmly fixed on the ceiling.
A groan drew their attention. Jaeda sat up
and Torque followed. “I think Grady’s finally awake,” she said.
“Good. We need to get cleaned up and work
out the details of the plan,” Torque said, his voice once more all business.
Jaeda nodded and headed toward the
bathroom. She didn’t know what the future held but she believed in her people
and Xylon’s people and the people of Earth. And she especially believed in
Torque to keep them safe. Somehow they’d make it out. Somehow they’d defeat
Daegal and the Egesa. They had to.
* * * * *
Nav-Control Ship FSMF-36, Earth’s Orbit
First she’d found out that Daegal had spies
posted on her ship. They’d been promptly executed. Now this. Frost paced back
and forth. “What do you mean Halah’s escaped? How did that happen?”
The guard looked uncomfortable as he stood
before her. “A miscalculation on our part. She was more ingenious than we
thought.”
“She’ll try to get down to the planet.”
“We fear she’s already done that for we
can’t find her anywhere on the ship.”
Halah’s presence wasn’t required for her
plans to work but Frost was not happy nevertheless. “Contact Daegal. He won’t
expect to hear from me and it might shake him up enough to make him careless.
It’s time to put the next phase into play. I want him dead.”
* * * * *
Earth’s Orbit
First he’d been informed of possible
shifters spotted on the planet. Now this. Daegal paced back and forth. “What do
you mean, Leila’s escaped? How did that happen?”
The guard looked uncomfortable as he stood
before him. “A miscalculation on our part. She was more ingenious than we
thought.”
“She’ll try to get down to the planet.”
“We fear she’s already done that for we
can’t find her anywhere on the ship.”
Leila’s presence wasn’t required for his
plans to work but Daegal was not happy nevertheless. “Contact Frost. She won’t
expect to hear from me and it might shake her up enough to make her careless.
It’s time to put the next phase into play. I want her dead.”
As the guard left, Daegal shook his head,
trying to clear the fog in his brain. Something wasn’t right. He felt
manipulated, controlled almost, which made no sense.
For the first time since Xylon’s
destruction, an uneasiness crept into his thoughts. “Laszlo? What are you
doing, brother?” he whispered, looking inward to try to find answers. Certainly
Laszlo was too weak to use his visionary powers. It had to be something else.
Someone else. “Who are you?”
After a few more injections, his strength
would be completely restored and no one would ever be able to manipulate him
again. Not even Laszlo, should his brother somehow survive.
But he needed to see it done before it was
too late.
* * * * *
Planet Earth, State of Colorado, U.S.A.
Underground Tracking Facility
Jaeda moved around the main control room,
checking monitors. They had power but the outside feeds didn’t, so all remained
quiet. Suddenly, in the silence, her comm device beeped. She jumped. She,
Torque and Kirk all looked at it at the same time. Grady sat in a chair across
from them, holding his head, not quite recovered yet. She grabbed the unit off
her belt. “I thought all communications were still down,” she said to Kirk.
He checked the system. “They are.”
She looked at the readout and recognized
the channel. Her people. She clicked a button. “
Tá
.”
They spoke in their native language, which
she doubted anyone in the room understood. The Xylon’s auto-translator system
would normally convert the language but they’d created a modified version for
security purposes. She glanced at Torque as she listened and noticed a frown
cross his face as he tried to decipher the words.
“How are you transmitting when all
communications are down?” she asked the commander, still speaking in their
modified code.
“Some of our people have taken control of
an interferometer on the planet. We made some modifications to it and added our
own external power source, which has allowed us to transmit over this channel.
Are you well,
Cuini
?”
“
Tá
. But we are trapped in the
control area of the tracking facility. Can you get us out if we turn off the
facility’s shield?”
“Not at this time. After we materialized
the crew down to the location of the interferometer, we suffered a circuitry
burn and stabilizer breakdown. We’re working on a fix now. However, we have
news. We are scanning Xylon Warriors on the ground. They are headed to your
location but have repeatedly been beaten back by Egesa troops.”
Grady’s people, she was certain. Torque’s
sister might even be among them by now. “What is the status of the planet?”
“Earth’s military has scored some minor
victories, but have also sustained major casualties.”
“Any sign of Xylon Warrior fleets on the
way?”
“Not yet. But we are monitoring the space
channels for transmissions the best we can. One Xylon ship that was already in
orbit has been destroyed. We have also detected another set of fighters,
several of which are masquerading as supply ships. Their actions have been
erratic. They destroyed the d-orbs sent to Earth. They may have also destroyed
the Xylon ship. Or perhaps it was one of the sting fighters that obliterated
it. We are unsure at the moment and I am waiting for confirmation.”
Jaeda’s stomached clenched. Her gaze
briefly met Torque’s.
“What?” he asked, apparently reading her
distress.
She waved her hand, not wanting to answer.
Not now.
“What are your orders,
Cuini
? Do we
engage?”
“Take no action at this time. We do not
have the firepower to take on an orbital battle on our own. Wait and hope for
Xylon Warrior fleets to arrive. Continue to monitor through this channel. Once
the system is fixed and we are cleared for transport, signal me. I’ll want you
to materialize myself and all Xylon markers within my immediate range to the
ship.” That would get her, Torque, and Grady to safety. She glanced at Kirk.
“One human male is among us. Include him also. I will check in when I can.”
“Understood.”
She clicked off the transmit button but
left the scan-function on the channel open for monitoring. She turned toward
the group, who was staring at her. Even Grady.
“What the hell happened to me?” Grady
asked. “I didn’t understand one word of what you were saying.” He tapped his
ear.
“Neither did I,” Torque said. He laid a
hand on Grady’s shoulder. “You’re fine. You had a reaction to the serum and I
had to knock you out. That’s all. There seems to be a few side effects to it
that we didn’t know about.”
“Did I miss the initiation?”
Torque smiled. “Yeah. Too bad.” He turned
to Jaeda. “Want to explain things to him? Kirk too.”
She nodded. “I, um, have a few ships
orbiting Earth right now. Rebel warships. Anti-government. Just a small force.
No match for the Egesa on our own.”
“What the hell is she talking about?” Grady
asked, looking at Torque.
“I’m a shifter,” Jaeda answered.
Grady’s gaze snapped back to her and his
brow furrowed. “A shifter? Fuck.”
“Like a shapeshifter?” Kirk asked with wide
eyes.
“Yes,” she answered. “I’m fighting against
the oppression of the shifter government, their control over the people. With
my diverse background and resources, Laszlo knew that I could help save Earth
from the Egesa and help to destroy Daegal by filtering needed information to
the proper sources and by manipulating certain military forces. In return for
me being part of Project ACE, he promised help to my rebel alliance.”
“What did they say to you?” Torque asked.
“Can they get us out of here?”
“Not at this time. The stabilizer on the
transport is down. They’ll remain cloaked and in contact until your Xylon
Warriors arrive.”
“Warriors are confirmed on the way?” Torque
questioned.
“They haven’t detected any yet, but they’re
watching for them. They did say that Grady’s warriors are headed this way but
are encountering interference from Egesa troops. Probably when he didn’t check
in with them, they realized that something was wrong. They also said that Earth
has scored some victories against the Egesa. There’s hope.” Just like Torque
had said.
“So what’s our next move?” Grady asked.
“Though we’re trapped in here, we’re not
useless. We’re going to help in the fight.” Torque paced, obviously gathering
his thoughts. “How much and what kind of weaponry is in the armory? When I was
in there, I wasn’t allowed complete access. Is there anything other than hand
weapons?”
“Like what?” Kirk asked.
“Like a space laser or anything that can
penetrate into the outer atmosphere.”
“Sure,” Jaeda said. “But we can’t get to
it.”
“What are you thinking, Torque?” Grady
asked, his eyes clearing.
“If we can destroy Daegal’s base ship, the
Egesa will be on their own. No leader. No orders. They won’t know what to do.”
Grady shook his head. “Some highbred
assassin or Egesa Commander will just take over.”
“But they’ll be in chaos, in the interim,
while they’re trying to regroup. If we can coordinate the destruction with the
ground attacks and the support from Xylon and Jaeda’s shifters, it will squash
their masses. Daegal needs the humans for their spinal fluid so that he and his
brother can continue to rule. The Egesa don’t need the humans. The assassins
don’t. Without Daegal, whoever is left will most likely bug out.”